Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump · ¶93

Without a clear-statement rule, Burnett's argument would have stood little chance. That's because the town's charter granted it the authority “to make and establish all such rules, by-laws, and ordinances, respecting the streets, markets, buildings, . . . and police of said town, that shall appear to them requisite and necessary for the security, welfare, and convenience of said town, or for preserving health, peace, order, and good government within the same.” Id., at 467 (internal quotation marks omitted). The charter even specifically gave the town the “privileg[e] of granting licenses for retailing of spirituous and other liquors.” Ibid. (internal quotation marks omitted). Semantically, the town's power was broad indeed and encompassed liquor licensing. But the court sided with Burnett anyway. Reasoning that the town's exorbitant licensing fee effectively banned the sale of liquor,…

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